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What Cleaning Products Do I Need in My Home?

woman in yellow apron holding a bucket of cleaning supplies

Do you ever get overwhelmed with all the cleaning products available? Do you find yourself wondering, “what cleaning products do I need in my home?”

The reality is that no list of cleaning products can get you the same kind of clean as a professional cleaning service. Call TLC to schedule a cleaning service today. A deep clean by a professional team is a great head start to keeping your home looking its best.

In between scheduled cleanings, however, it is useful to keep the essential cleaning products on-hand. There are many options to choose from, yet there are only a handful of items you need to have on hand for everyday use. So you don’t overspend on all those fancy cleaning lotions and potions, keep reading to see a list of what cleaning products you need in your home.

What cleaning products do I need in my home?

woman shopping for cleaning products at the store

-Baking soda can mitigate odors and remove hard spots to clean, such as soap remnants, scrapes on your footwear, and even light grease.

-White Vinegar also removes odors and grease, serves as a disinfectant, and does not leave marks behind, so it is perfect for making your windows sparkle. It can be used to clean many areas, including many kitchen surfaces, and is an excellent floor cleaner.

-Rubbing alcohol actively destroys bacteria. It cleanses and decontaminates all those surfaces where microorganisms and other nasty stuff resides. Fathom to think about what might be lying in the cracks and crevices…yuck!

-Dish soap is a mild cleaner; it doesn’t ruin the surfaces that require a gentler cleanser. Dish soap is a
PH neutral product. It is also a cost-effective cleaner because you don’t need to use much to achieve your desired results.

-Furniture polish brings out the shine on wooden furniture, plus it often has a pleasant smell.

-Bleach is a crucial cleaning product to keep on hand. It is corrosive and works well on harder to clean areas. Word to the wise: Don’t mix bleach with other cleaning products as you may experience a chemistry experiment gone wrong!

-All-Purpose Cleaner is the best product to have and can serve as the only one you have in your home because it can clean multiple surfaces and hard to remove marks. Best of all, you can make your all-purpose cleaners using some common ingredients. Click here to learn how to make your own.

What cleaning tools do I need in my home?

man and woman playfully fighting with cleaning products

Of course, you need to have more than the cleaning product to apply them as needed. Here is of recommended tools you should have available.

-Microfiber cloths are multipurpose cleaning cloths. They can be used wet or dry and for tasks such as dusting, wiping down kitchen surfaces, and even inside and outside of your car.

-Toothbrushes (find one that you are no longer using) have many useful cleaning purposes. They can be used to scrub and shine areas lightly and to get to those areas that are hard to navigate with other tools. Word of caution: Don’t keep your cleaning toothbrush(es) anywhere near your toothpaste. You wouldn’t want to grab one to brush your teeth accidentally.

-Paper towels are the good ole standard “quicker picker-up.” These are a great choice because you can dispose of them after use, instead of risking the spread of bacteria and other germs.

-Rubber gloves are the best way to protect your hands from unnecessary dirt and germs. They are optional, but there are lots of messes that warrant protection when cleaning them. Insert your own visual here. Gross! If you are overly concerned about the germs and bacteria hanging around and want a deep clean, call TLC to schedule a cleaning service today.

-Sponges are a necessity and can be used in many places and for multiple types of messes. Double-sided sponges are also handy because they provide two types of cleaning surfaces, one side for gentle wiping and the other for harder to clean areas. Be sure you have several sponges on hand as you don’t want to use the same one to clean the kitchen countertop and those not so pleasant places–if you know what I mean. Click on this link for tips on maintaining healthy sponges: How to Clean Your Kitchen Sponge.

-Mops have been a cleaning staple for a long time. They are more light-weight, less cumbersome to manage, and are the perfect choice if you don’t like to get down on your hands and knees to clean the floor.

-Vacuums are essential cleaning tools that existed in households for many years. They also continue to evolve; they have become more comfortable to use, lighter, and more compact. A vacuum is vital to have because it lifts dust and other hard to see remnants in your carpet. You can’t get by with just a broom!

Keep it organized

cleaning tools and supplies stored in a cabinet

If you are someone who likes to have a clutter-free environment, there are some ways to keep your cleaning products and tools organized.

-Get yourself a storage container that you can easily transport and put away in a cupboard or closet

-Determine a location that you always put your cleaning items away and place them in logical areas. For example, store all of your bathroom cleaning products in your vanity or other convenient location in the bathroom. It makes sense to store cleaning items in the area in which plan to put them to use! After all, you wouldn’t store your pots and pans in the bathroom.

Last but not least, you will want to make sure that you maintain your cleaning tools. After all, they are not self-cleaning, and they have been used to clean-up some of the most unsightly and unsanitary messes. Click here for tips on maintaining and sanitizing your cleaning tools.

Call the professionals

Now that you’re no longer wondering about what cleaning products you need in your home consider giving yourself a break.

Keep a few essential supplies and call TLC to schedule a regular or deep cleaning service today.

How to Easily Clean Your Home Using Baking Soda

yellow cleaning gloves, lemons, dish towel, baking soda and blue sponge

Everyone knows to put an open box of baking soda in the back of the fridge, and it will help absorb odors. Did you also know that by cleaning with baking soda you can freshen every room in your house?

So much cleaning, so little time. Do you know what would make house cleaning way more fun? A maid.

A maid or TLC Cleaning would make house cleaning way more fun. Schedule with TLC Fargo to get the best clean and give yourself some more fun time.

In the meantime, give the once over to the tips below on how to use baking soda throughout your home.

Let’s start in the kitchen

If you sprinkle some baking soda onto a damp sponge, you can use it to wipe down almost any surface. Use it to make counters, stovetops, sinks, and faucets gleam.

Want to make your produce gleam? Add a teaspoon of baking soda to a large bowl of water. Let your fruits and veggies soak in there for a couple of minutes. Gently scrub with a brush and rinse. Waxy layers and pesticides are gone!

Want to store those fruits and veggies in gleaming containers too, but you reheated spaghetti in them last, and now they are pale orange? Baking soda to the rescue!

Try wiping the containers with a baking soda and water paste first. If that’s not enough, mix four tablespoons of baking soda into one quart of water and soak the containers overnight.

Now that we’re done in the kitchen let’s move down the hall.

To the dreaded bathroom

someone pouring baking soda down a bathroom sink drain

Cleaning with baking soda is a dream come true in the bathroom.

We may have left the kitchen, but is your curling iron a baked-on mess? You can use a baking soda paste here too.

Apply the paste to the curling iron and scrub gently. Too much abrasion can wear away some ceramic coverings, so be gentle. Baked on styling products are now gone.

Are your drains running a little slow? Try pouring a half cup of baking soda down the drain, followed by a half cup of vinegar. Wait until the combination stops bubbling. Then pour six cups of hot water down the drain as well.

This mix is safe for pipes and won’t hurt septic systems either.

Your kitty’s bathroom needs attention too. Add baking soda to litter boxes to keep litter box odor at bay.

In the boudoir

someone cleaning an engagement ring with a toothbrush and baking soda

Keep your jewelry sparkling by creating a paste of 3-parts baking soda to 1-part water. Apply to each piece with a lint-free cloth and rinse. Restore the shine in no time.

How long have you had that mattress? Vacuum the mattress and then sprinkle the surface with baking soda. Let it sit for 30 minutes and vacuum again. Voila – fresh-smelling sleeping quarters.

Speaking of smell, can we talk about the shoes? Pour baking soda directly into those smelly shoes and leave them to sit. Just tap out any excess powder before wearing again. It’s that simple.

Remember that open box of baking soda in the fridge? That trick works in the closet too. Leave a fresh, opened container of baking soda on the shelves, and it will absorb odors there as well.

Let’s do some living in the living room

vinegar, cleaning gloves, spray bottle, baking soda and sponge flat lay

Freshen up musty upholstery by sprinkling baking soda on the fabric. Wait 15 minutes and vacuum.

Mix a tablespoon of baking soda with 2-3 drops of your favorite essential oil. Mix well. Place that mixture into an empty spray bottle and fill with water.

You now have a perfect room spray for the living room and the rest of the house.

Fireplace doors blackened? Sprinkle some baking soda onto crumpled up, wet, newspaper. Scrub the glass with this newspaper and wipe with a clean cloth: no scratches, but lots of sparkles.

Cleaning with baking soda gives you an unbelievable clean in the living room too!

Don’t forget the laundry

a person adding baking soda to a load of laundry

If you add a cup of baking soda, along with your usual detergent, to a load of laundry, you can make your clothes and linens brighter. Use as a pre-soak for heavy odors like sweat or smoke.

Add baking soda to diaper pails and create an always ready pre-soak. Soak diapers before washing to remove odors.

Time to make slime

Now, here is the real reason you need to give TLC Cleaning a call right now. With the time you save by letting them do the cleaning, you can make colored slime with baking soda too.

Here is what you need:

-One 4-6oz bottle of white liquid all-purpose washable school glue

-½ teaspoon of baking soda

-1 ½ tablespoon multipurpose contact lens solution

-a few drops of liquid food coloring

Mix the baking soda, lens solution, and food coloring in a bowl. Add the glue and mix with a spoon or your hands.

The slime will become less sticky the more it is kneaded. Add more baking soda for a thicker, grittier texture. Add small amounts of water for a thinner, runnier slime.

You can also add glitter, or start with glitter glue, to make sparkly slime.

And when you’re all done? Call TLC Cleaning and let them take care of the mess. You have things to go slime!